Dare To Dream

Several months back, I wrote a post titled ‘One Step At A Time’ in which I used one of my newest fitness training in Utah clients (with her permission of course) as an example of progress (to read it click here). I’d like to continue that story just a little, to really show you the progress that she has indeed made. To date she has lost 76 pounds…SEVENTY SIX! If that were not impressive enough, she just hit a major milestone yesterday and I was lucky enough to be with her when she did. I’d like to tell you about it.

After returning from the trip I wrote about in my first post, Cindy set a goal for herself to hike to Delicate Arch, a 3 mile hike round trip. She was doing some hikes in the Salt Lake area to prepare herself and continued coming to the gym and kicking butt during her workouts. She was doing fantastic with her fitness training in Utah and was on track to make her goal of hiking to the Delicate Arch a reality when she hit a few roadblocks that were out of her control. So many people at this point choose to give up, but not Cindy. She had a picture of the arch above her desk with the words ‘Dare to Dream’ printed on it. It was amazing motivation for her.

She kept going, doing as much as possible to ensure her success while dealing with the roadblocks head on. The roadblocks she was up against persisted for several months, and though she was definitely disappointed, she never gave up on her goal nor her fitness training in Utah. The end result however, was that she had suffered some setbacks, some of them more significant than others, and she knew it. In fact, she even asked me about a month before the trip to Moab was scheduled if it was going to be able to happen or not. At that point, it didn’t look good at all.

That month passed with amazing speed, and she found herself overcoming some of the road blocks and finding ways to deal with others that she had not overcome as yet. She kept coming to the gym, kept losing weight and ultimately; kept making progress. On Friday, April 26, 2012 we made the drive to Moab in hopes of making a dream, a reality.

On one of the most beautiful Saturday mornings in April that I have ever witnessed, Cindy and I (accompanied by her friend Beth) set out to hike up to Delicate Arch. She was so excited to be on the path that she knew led to her goal, she could hardly stand it. I got excited just watching her level of excitement!! There were a few spots on the trail that she had heard about that had her (as well as myself) concerned, so there was definitely a little bit of anxiety but for the most part, pure excitement.

The weather was beautiful and the temperature was cool, perfect for hiking. Off we went! I had never been to Moab before, never seen Arches National Park so I was beside myself with the beauty I was surrounded by. I think I spent more time taking pictures than talking, and (for those of you that don’t know me personally) that’s saying something!! Lol.

I am PROUD to report that SHE DID IT!!! To be there with her as she saw the arch for the first time in person was truly an honor. To watch her as the tears of joy slid down her cheeks, as the realization of what she had just done really sank in was nothing short of AMAZING! As she motioned for me to join her for a picture under the arch, I couldn’t help but think how far beyond grateful I am that she invited me along for the journey. What a complete honor. I got a tear in my eye myself thinking how truly lucky I am to be able to witness the amazing progress she has made, and will continue to make.